[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1999, Book I)]
[March 31, 1999]
[Page 475]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Statement on the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty
March 31, 1999

    I am very pleased that yesterday negotiators from the 30 countries 
that are party to the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe 
(CFE) reached an agreement setting the stage for a final adapted treaty. 
All countries agreed to deeper limits on their conventional forces and 
stronger measures to ensure compliance. The decision preserves NATO's 
ability to fulfill its post-cold-war missions, to ensure its new members 
are full military partners, and to deepen its engagement with 
Partnership For Peace states. It also takes into account the interests 
of non-NATO states and helps fulfill the commitment President 
Yeltsin and I made last September to conclude 
a final adapted treaty by the OSCE summit this year.
    At a time when we are trying to end a pattern of escalating 
insecurity, brutality, and armed conflict in the Balkans, I am gratified 
that these 30 countries, comprising the vast majority of European 
nations, are moving in a different direction. Together, we are building 
a Europe in which armies prepare to stand beside their neighbors, not 
against them, and security depends on cooperation, not competition.